1 July 2013
Fire Danger on the Rise
Summer may have been delayed, but it certainly has not been denied.
Proof of that came yesterday on Sparrow Park Road just north of Gardiner, when a wildland fire consumed logging equipment and blackened more than ten acres.
Crews from Coos Forest Protective Association and the Siuslaw National Forest, along with one aircraft, battled the blaze that reportedly started near Highway 101 and spread through timber and logging slash.
The blaze demonstrates the level of fire danger that exists in Western Oregon. Despite cool and humid mornings along the coastal strip, by afternoon things are warm and dry enough to burn.
Forecasters with the Pacific Northwest Interagency Fire Center in Portland are saying conditions are right, beginning today, for the possibility of a large fire occurring in the central coast region. Two factors that could increase that danger… heavy recreation use and high afternoon winds that can dry fuels and spread flame.
Legislative Session Progresses
There is still plenty of work to be done in Salem, but lawmakers forged through approval of nearly two dozen bills in a rare Saturday session over the weekend. That sets the stage for action, possibly today, on bills that will finalize appropriations for K-through-12 education and reduce prison costs.
Both are key components of the state budget.
But, still being worked on are bills being described as a “grand bargain” between the two major parties that deal with taxes and public pension reforms.
One version being considered would reduce the unfunded liability of public agencies in the state by $5-billion over the next several years. Republicans stand squarely against that however, saying it does not do enough.
Interestingly enough… if that bill fails, lawmakers could wrap up the session by Wednesday. If it passes, they would likely take Thursday off and return to work Friday.
The Oregon Constitution requires adjournment no later than July 13th.
Port Swearing In
The Port of Siuslaw Commission will hold a special meeting this evening to swear in four new commissioners.
Bill Fleenor is the sole carryover from the previous board. Four new members were elected in May.
Terry Duman, Jay Cable and Ron Caputo begin four year terms; Nancy Rickard will fill the final two years in the position that Joshua Greene was elected to hold two years ago. He resigned earlier this year after being elected to the Florence City Council.
This evening’s meeting begins at seven pm at the Port Office on Harbor Street.
New Federal Logging Plan in the Works
While members of Oregon’s congressional delegation try to find a way to increase logging on the so-called O&C lands, the federal agency that oversees them is working on a new management plan.
A previous effort by the Bush administration nicknamed “The Whopper”… for its promises of more logs and revenues for timber counties failed to pass muster under the Endangered Species Act.
Now the U.S. Bureau of Land Management is taking a whole new approach. The agency says unlike the last time, they will be in close touch with scientists from other agencies, as required by the Endangered Species Act.
Rather than focusing on timber production, they want to produce healthy and complex forests where fish and wildlife thrive.
The plan is scheduled to be finished in fall 2015.
